Whether it’s hot, sunny, cold, raining or dead calm, fishing is fishing the conditions. Every body of water has a current of some sort, whether it is man-made by boats, dam control, river flow, tide flow, or storms, there is always water movement. It may be subtle but could still affect a fish’s location. There are multiple factors when pursuing game fish, but Depth, Speed, Size, Action and Color will make or break your day.
FISHING VERTICALLY
When fishing vertically, your presentation, lure selection and depth determines success. When fishing vertical baits, the lure you may want to use will depend on how fast you want the bait to fall or drop. Suggested lures for vertical presentations are: jigging spoon, drop shot, jig, Rat-L-Trap, Chatter Bait and tube baits. These baits are just a few that are available, but there are literally hundreds that can be used vertically from 20′ to 100′.
Techniques include to flutter a short distance off the bottom, drop and rip, quiver in place as to represent a dying bait fish, up and down motion, or do nothing (very little action).
FISHING HORIZONTALLY
When fishing horizontally – There are a vast array of horizontal bait design lures in the vertical presentation (cast and retrieve). Pay close attention to the bite or strike of the fish and try to duplicate that action. The difference between the bite and strike is vicious versus subtle. If there is a subtle bite, slow down the lure action and retrieval speed.
The retrieval can also be to stop the bait and let it sit and flutter it then move the bait again. There are many combinations for retrieval, let the fish tell you what they want. Surface baits such as buzz baits, prop baits or floating baits (mice, frog, birds) are considered horizontal.